Falling
by Syel-Kisa
Summary: Anna was not cut out to be queen, it was always Elsa who would take that title. When Elsa comes down with a terrible illness, Anna may have no other choice but to take Elsa's place. [This is a work in progress summary, I'm sorry! This is a Krisanna fanfic guys]
1. Chapter 1

This is my first Frozen fanfic! I absolutely adored the movie and all its characters!

Disclaimer: Frozen and its characters do not belong to me, though that certainly would be lovely.

* * *

Sighing loudly, Anna shifted conspicuously on the couch.

When her older sister merely turned the page of her book, Anna tried again. This time sighing even louder and rolling onto her back with her arm draped across her forehead.

Again, no response.

"Elsa," she complained, sitting up. Finally giving up on the 'subtle' approach of gaining the ice queen's attention.

Slowly, the eldest of the two dog-eared the page she was on and closed the book. Turning her body so that she was facing the other girl, Elsa raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, Anna?" she asked in a slightly amused tone.

"Why do you always do that?" Anna asked incredulously, "You knew that I was trying to get your attention!"

Elsa merely chuckled as she leaned back in her chair beside the fire, watching her sister fondly. "Probably because I know exactly what you're going to say." there was an obvious note of teasing to her tone and it only irritated Anna further.

"How could you possibly know what I'm going to say?" she asked with a frown as she folded her arms across her chest.

Elsa seemed to be resisting the urge to laugh again at her sisters behavior and cleared her throat, "you've only been asking me the same question every single day since he left, Anna." said Elsa gently. Almost immediately, Anna's irritation melted away with a much more genuine sigh than from before.

"I just… I miss him." she said quietly as she looked out the large window that was a few feet to her right from her current position. Snow fell slowly down upon the world outside. A shiver made its way through Anna's body at the thought of Kristoff freezing right that moment while she was by a nice, warm fire. "It feels like he has been gone a lot longer than a month."

Kristoff had told her that he would be back in a month, that he needed to take some time during the beginning of winter to get some of the ice from a specific lake in the mountains. Of course she had wanted to go with him, though Elsa had managed to convince her that she'd be needed in Arendelle.

He should be getting back any day now, though Anna could hardly contain her concern. All she wanted to do was to wrap her arms around him and never let go. She was sure he was fine. Kristoff was strong and sturdy, there was no doubt in her mind that he would make it back to her in one piece. Despite this… she couldn't help but worry.

It was in that moment that her sister became overcome with a fit of coughing, immediately drawing Anna's attention.

"Elsa? Are you okay?" Anna asked with furrowed eyebrows as she stood from the couch and took a hesitant step towards where her sister sat in her chair.

Still coughing, Elsa nodded and waved Anna away as if to say that she was fine. Anna ignored her sisters attempt to wave her off and she immediately put a hand on her sisters forehead, instantly recoiling as though she had been burned.

"Elsa…" Anna said, eyes wide as she held her hand to her chest. "You're burning up! I'm getting a doctor!" she exclaimed, turning and running out of the room. Elsa never felt warm to the touch, Anna had always believed that it was because of the fact that she had an affinity for ice.

So naturally, she wasn't sure what to make of this situation.

"Sienna!" she exclaimed desperately, "Sienna!" Typically the young brunette was never far from wherever Anna was, mostly because she was Anna's personal servant.

It was then that the young woman came running out of one of the rooms that lead to the hallway, she looked alarmed. "What is it milady?" she asked, hurrying over to where Anna had stopped running.

"Elsa is burning up with a nasty fever, we need the doctor. Please hurry and send for help!" when the still stunned servant nodded and hurried away, Anna quickly returned to her sisters side.

"Anna…" the ice queen croaked when Anna re-entered the room. "I'm fine… these coughing fits are normal now." though judging by the flush to her face, Elsa certainly wasn't okay.

"Elsa," Anna said sternly, "How long has this been happening?" Elsa never seemed off, though perhaps that was because Anna was too wrapped up in her own thoughts to notice the changes in her sisters health.

Anna really needed to stop being so oblivious, it wasn't good. Especially when it meant that her sister was suffering for it.

"A few weeks," Elsa responded weakly, "Though the fever is new."

Anna forced herself to chuckle a bit, "You're so silly to have not said anything about this! Don't worry, a doctor is on their way here now. We'll get you fixed up soon." Anna brushed a strand of her sisters platinum blonde hair off of her burning forehead.

"Your hand feels so cold, Anna." her sister said quietly as she closed her eyes, "Its nice." with that, Anna put both of her hands on the sides of her sisters face.

For a long while, the two stayed that way. It wasn't until almost a full thirty minutes that Sienna burst into the room with a middle-aged man at her heel.

"Pardon me, milady." he said quietly as he set down his briefcase and knelt beside the chair and got to work. He took Elsa's temperature and it was learned that she was well over the healthy temperature and that she needed to lay down immediately. With the help of a male servant, Sienna transferred the queen to the couch that was only a few feet away from the chair.

Once she was laying down the doctor asked for a bucket of snow and a cloth to rest on the queens head, some things that Sienna quickly retrieved.

"I will have to watch her majesty for a little while before I can diagnose her accurately." the doctor said solemnly to Anna after Elsa had fallen asleep. "All we can do now is try and lower her temperature, you may feel free to remain in the room as well."

Of course, that was exactly what Anna did. She didn't move from her sisters side for anything. It wasn't until she started coughing in her sleep that the doctor asked Anna to step away for a few minutes. She didn't hesitate to do as he asked and waited impatiently for him to say something when he turned to face her.

"It may be in the queen's best interest for you to call for the help of more doctors, specialists even." he said after a few moments, "I have a feeling this isn't an ordinary illness. You said that her fever spiked suddenly, yet she has been coughing for a few weeks?" Anna nodded and he continued, "Yes… this is no ordinary cold. Please do what you can to bring in more doctors."

There was nothing that she detested more than the fact that due to their location, it took several days-if not weeks-for anyone from other kingdoms to show up. So the first of the doctors who would manage to show up would be those in their own kingdom.

Word of the queen's sudden illness spread through the kingdom rapidly and every doctor that could be reached was contacted and asked to come to the palace. Overall, the process took a few hours with the help of the palace soldiers moving all throughout Arendelle.

Anna could only pray that this would be enough for her sister.

* * *

I hope that this was enjoyable for you guys! Please review and let me know what you think!

- Syel


	2. Chapter 2

Oh goodness, thank you to everyone who reviewed! I really appreciate it, reviews always make me feel so nice inside hehe

Anyway, this is chapter two of Falling! Please enjoy!

* * *

It wasn't until Kristoff returned almost a whole week after it all started that Anna was able to feel a flicker of hope.

The moment he returned he wordlessly pulled Anna into an embrace and almost immediately the dam that had been holding in all her tears shattered and she sobbed for a long time. Despite the fact that Kristoff had never really been good with that kind of thing, he reacted in the best possible way for Anna in that moment.

He had said nothing and simply ran his fingers through her hair.

When she finished he had asked about details. It was while he was making his way back that he heard of how Arendelle's queen wasn't well. After that he had done what he could to make it back as quickly as possible, knowing that Anna would need him.

"She is running a fever that only seems to go up… the doctors are worried that she is going to overheat. They can't figure out what is going on, they are all perplexed. I'm so scared Kristoff…" she trailed off and her gaze went to her feet.

"Maybe the trolls could help." Kristoff said almost as an afterthought as he scratched the back of his head.

Anna's eyes widened at the idea and she slapped herself on the forehead, "How could I have forgotten about the trolls?!" she asked, obviously stupefied at her own forgetfulness before she grabbed Kristoff's large hand and started to lead him towards her sisters room. "Kristoff, you are a genius!"

Elsa had been moved to her room when it was discovered that she wouldn't be getting better any time soon.

"We have to go see the trolls! I'm certain that they will be able to figure out what has happened, maybe even heal her!" Already she was starting to get excited, perhaps things weren't as terrible as she had thought!

It wouldn't be long before she figured out that it wouldn't be that easy.

"But this could save her life!" Anna exclaimed as she frowned up at one of the taller doctors whom she had told the idea to.

"Perhaps," the man said slowly, "If she somehow managed to survive the trip. You know how ill the queen is, I'm afraid that moving around much at all could make her fever spike. Something like that wouldn't do anything but kill her at this point." They were talking in the hall outside of Elsa's room.

It took all of Anna's power not to flip on the doctor, did he not understand how efficient the troll elder was? Apparently not. Though before she could say anything that she would eventually regret, Kristoff put a hand on her shoulder as a silent warning and she bit her tongue.

"Right… thank you for the help." she said through gritted teeth. The doctor didn't show any sign of offense to Anna's tone before he returned to Elsa's side.

Anna was silent for a long while before she finally turned her sad eyes up to meet with Kristoff's concerned ones, "If we can't take her to the trolls… what are we going to do?" she asked, trying not to break down into tears once more. "The doctors don't know what is wrong… if something doesn't happen quickly… she is going to die Kristoff." she said, biting her lip.

Kristoff shook his head, "No, we're going to figure out a way to save your sister, Anna." he said seriously, refusing to let the young woman before him to give up. Giving up and Anna were two things that simply did not go well together. "Perhaps if we brought the trolls some of your sisters blood… they could figure out from that? I mean, illness would be detectable in blood, right? That makes sense."

Anna looked doubtful, though nodded after a few moments of thinking. "I suppose that would be better than nothing…" she admitted, trying her best to offer the blond a smile. He had only just returned from such a long journey and he was already suggesting leaving, she felt terrible about it.

"Are you sure you would be okay heading out despite the fact that you've been on the road for such a long time already? I mean, I wouldn't mind going alone. I'm pretty sure I know the way to the trolls place now…" Besides, she could always take along a soldier or two if it would make him feel better… no matter how much she would have preferred him as her knight.

Almost immediately after she spoke, he was shaking his head. "No. I want to go along with you," he said without even the slightest waver in his tone. "I'm used to being out anyway, it wouldn't be a big deal for me to go out again, I'm more concerned about you." Anna could tell by his pained expression that he was thinking about her near-death experience with ice.

"Shh," she whispered, gingerly cupping his cheek in her left hand as she smiled up at him. He placed his large hand over hers and leaned into her touch, closing his eyes for a moment. "I'll be fine." she promised with certainty evident in her eyes.

"Um, pardon me? The queen is awake and asking for you, milady." the same doctor from before said, appearing in the doorway.

Anna blinked and her cheeks flushed as she quickly reclaimed her hand, obviously embarrassed for having been caught in such a personal moment.

"Ah, alright! Thanks for letting me know." she said after clearing her throat and sharing a glance with Kristoff who only offered her a smile of encouragement before she turned to enter her sisters bedroom, walking past the door that had previously separated them for so long.

To think that at that moment… she didn't even need to knock.

Once Elsa's eyes found Anna's form, she smiled and Anna returned that very same smile without hesitation as she sat down beside her sister. "Hey there, you're sure worrying everyone. How do you feel?" she asked gently.

"Not well," Elsa said honestly. Her voice was hoarse and it was obvious that it pained her to speak. Anna was about to tell her to save her voice before the eldest of the two started to talk again. "Anna… you are going to have to take my place as queen if this goes on for much longer." she said in a broken whisper before coughing a bit.

At this Anna quickly shook her head, "You're going to be fine Elsa! I am not going to have to do anything like that! Don't talk as though you aren't going to get well…" tears prickled at the young woman's eyes as she struggled to keep from bursting into tears once more. She couldn't do that in front of her sister, especially not when she was in so much pain.

Before her sister could speak again, Anna quickly brought up the topic of the trolls. Telling her what Kristoff had said only a few minutes before. "So if you fill a tiny vial of your blood, we can figure out what is wrong and get you the help that you need! So stop talking about this, you're going to get better." Anna refused to listen to any other option at this point. Especially not since there was now a small glimmer of hope for the queen.

"Anna…" Elsa trailed off before she sighed, probably realizing that there was nothing she could say now to change Anna's mind. "Alright. Though… you must promise me that if I don't get better, you will take the role as queen without hesitation."

Anna promised her sister that she would become queen if she absolutely had to. After that, Anna had Elsa fill a crystal vial with her blood. It was a small bottle that was the size of Anna's palm, so it didn't do any harm to the queen. "Just… don't give up Elsa. We'll figure this out."

With that, Anna returned to Kristoff after having gotten dressed for the winter weather. The mountain man had gone outside to be with Sven while Anna talked with her sister.

"You ready to go visit the Love Experts?" she asked with a bit of a giggle, to which Kristoff responded with his own chuckle and a nod. "Great! We've gotta hurry."

Anna didn't tell Kristoff what her sister had said to her. She didn't want the both of them to feel a bit discouraged by her words.

They didn't need that.

Besides, Anna wanted to think as little as possible about the fact that her sister may actually die. That… and the fact that she would have to take her place if she did die. To be queen… Anna wasn't sure she was cut out for something like that.

Anna had never once felt as though she was cut out to be queen.

* * *

I hope that this was okay guys! Please review, it really encourages me whenever I get feedback.

-Syel


	3. Chapter 3

So sorry for the delay you guys! I've been very busy with school and mid-terms, not to mention the fact that I had a bit of a writers block when it came to writing this next chapter. Even so, I feel as though I may be out of that now! Thank goodness. Anyway! Please enjoy this chapter!

* * *

Ever since Elsa had become visibly ill, a storm has been brewing for miles and made the already fairly miserable winter even worse for Arendelle. Elsa has done nothing but apologize, believing it to somehow be her fault. Now, out in the elements herself, Anna wondered how the ice harvesters had managed to survive up in the mountains. Certainly it had to be even worse up there, right?

"Are you sure that you're going to be okay? That looks a bit thin…" Kristoff trailed off as he watched Anna, concern evident in his light brown eyes. They hadn't been out for very long and were riding in the sleigh that he had received after everything went back to normal and Elsa returned to Arendelle.

"I'm fine, Kristoff." Anna said with a small smile before shaking her head, "There is no need to worry about me. I've got plenty of layers on right now." Though really, was that enough? It had to be well past negative ten degrees. Though that didn't really matter, Elsa needed help and she needed it as soon as possible. There was no time to worry about herself. "How long did you say that it would take to get there?"

Turning his attention back to Sven who was running as quickly as he could in this weather, he frowned lightly. "It shouldn't be too much longer if Sven can keep up this pace. I mostly worry about our return. Right now we aren't going against the wind, it will be rough going back to the palace." Anna shivered at the thought before she found herself scooting a bit closer to the young man.

Glancing at her, Kristoff lifted his big arm and wrapped it around her tiny figure, pulling her close as he held the reins in his right hand. When she looked up at him, he was no longer looking at her. Though his cheeks were slightly more rosy than they had been previously and the princess couldn't help but giggle a bit despite herself. Her mountain man always knew how to make her feel better, even if it was just a gesture. That was one of the things that she really liked about him.

Leaning her head against him, they spent the rest of the ride to the trolls like this. There weren't many other words spoken between them, Anna was too busy thinking about her sister and Kristoff knew this.

Pulling themselves to a stop when they finally arrived, Anna hopped out of the sleigh and hurried into the area where the trolls were in their boulder-like states. Kristoff was not far behind her as he rubbed his hands together, "Alright, guys? We kinda need your help." He called, turning in a circle.

In response to the humans, all of the boulders rolled towards them in a way that was very similar to when Anna had first seen them with Kristoff.

"Whats the matter Kristoff?"one of them asked, turning his eyes to Anna before tilting his head to the side a bit.

Before he could respond, the elder came forward. His wise eyes gave Anna the impression that he knew exactly why they were there. "My sister…" Anna said slowly, "She has become very ill and none of the doctors can figure out what is wrong with her. We came here hoping that maybe…" she looked down.

"The queen is in grave danger." The old troll said, voice grim. "Along with the queen… there is you my young princess. Someone is plotting to kill the both of you." With these words, she could feel Kristoff tense up at her side as she blinked slowly. It took a few moments before she realized just what he was saying to her.

"So someone… someone purposely is doing this to my sister?" she asked in disbelief, "But everyone loves Elsa! After her return everyone has accepted her!" It would have been naive to believe that the snow queen didn't have enemies, for everybody had enemies. Whether or not they knew that of course was a completely other story.

"Who?" Kristoff asked, voice hard and serious. It almost took Anna by surprise when she looked up to discover that he was looking as though he'd take the person out himself.

"I cannot tell you that my boy, whomever it is has a magical veil around them. I do not know who they are even in the slightest, not even if they are male or female. What I do know is that the both of you need to be careful, with the amount of poison that the queen has in her body now… I fear that it may be too late for her." He was saying this slowly, so as not to take Anna off guard.

Of course, that didn't work and immediately it felt as though someone had taken a knife and stabbed it in her heart as she stumbled a bit and grasped Kristoff's arm in an attempt to keep herself standing. In response to her, Kristoff prepared himself to catch her if she fell.

"But… we came here in hopes for a cure." Anna said, "Surely there is something that you can do! Look! We brought you a sample of my sisters blood, we thought that it might help you figure out a good way to make her well again." As she spoke, she took her free hand and pulled the vial from where it had been inside her shirt, against her heart in order to keep it from freezing.

Holding it out, the troll hesitantly took it before he looked up at her with sad eyes. Eyes that told her everything that she needed to know.

There was nothing that he could do to help her sister.

"I advise that you hurry back… spend the little time she has left with her. Also… be cautious of what you eat or drink for a while. I am not sure of the way that the evildoer has poisoned your sister, though it would be wise to be careful until he or she is found."

Everything from that point on went by in a blur. Kristoff helping her to the sleigh, getting in and riding away from what had been her only hope. She couldn't think of anything other then how soon she would be officially familyless. Back when Elsa would spend most of her time in her room… Anna had felt that way. Though the assurance that Elsa was in fact alive had made her feel slightly better.

Now though… that wouldn't be true for very much longer.

She didn't even realize that she was crying until Kristoff gingerly wiped away the already freezing droplets of liquid that were falling from her eyes. He looked sorrowful, though he appeared even more angry. She didn't doubt that the thought of someone out to get her and her sister had alarmed him.

Even though her life seemed to be in danger as well, Anna couldn't bring herself to think about how she would be the next target. All she could think about was her sister, her kind and loving sister. Someone whom would probably never see spring again.

"She isn't going to make it Kristoff." she said finally, after a long time of remaining silent. Her quiet voice had caught the blond males attention almost right away as he looked at her. "Elsa is going to die… and then I'm going to be next. What is going to happen to Arendelle?" her lip quivered and she covered her face in her gloved hands. It was all too much to think about for her.

"For one, you are not going to die Anna. I am going to make sure of that." Kristoff said firmly, "Don't think for a second that you will die. Since everyone will be notified of the plot, security will be tightened and no one will be able to so much as step foot into the courtyard without someone accompanying them. Hell, I will probably have to be accompanied when I see you as well."

This was probably true. With Anna being the last heir to the throne, her safety would be imperative. Even so… "No." she said with a slight shake of the head, "You will be allowed to remain close without supervision. You are obviously not out to hurt me, you weren't even here when Elsa first started getting sick."

They were getting close to the palace now, they couldn't have been gone longer than a few hours. Though it felt like an eternity to Anna. She wondered if Elsa was awake. She hoped so. Anna would remain by her sisters side until she no longer could do so.

Town came into sight and Anna knew that it wouldn't be too long before the kingdom would soon be grieving for their queen. The thought was a horrid one and Anna almost found herself breaking into tears once more, but instead, she put on a smile as she waved at a group of children who had stopped playing to wave at the princess.

For now, it was time to be brave. For that was what a princess was supposed to be in times of peril, right? She was supposed to keep a calm exterior, even when on the inside she was everything but that.

* * *

I hope that this was okay you guys! Please leave a review! I need those to keep me motivated~

-Syel


	4. Chapter 4

Okay, now, normally I wouldn't post another chapter unless I had at least five reviews... but I got a bit ahead of myself and wrote up the next chapter. I thought I may as well post it! Its actually quite a it longer than most of my other chapters... for any story. I'm going to make an attempt to make more chapters around this length actually. I hope that you guys enjoy this chapter!

* * *

The first thing that Anna had to deal with when they finally got back to the palace, was all the people that were beginning to gather at the gates. After the message of Elsa's illness had started to spread around, the people were beginning to wonder if she would be alright.

Anna almost winced when they were spotted as they rode up, "Princess Anna!" One woman exclaimed and within moments, all eyes were on her and Kristoff. Again she could feel the young man tensing up and Anna remembered that he was not very good when it came to crowds. Though he was a bit better from what he had been previously, he still didn't cope very well.

Questions about Elsa and her illness began as well as where she and the mountain man had gone in such a hurry. Shrinking back a bit at all the questions, Anna couldn't help but struggle to find a good answer to say to them without actually lying. Since she now knew that Elsa inevitably would not be okay… it was important for the villagers to calm down until things became a little bit more certain in Anna's eyes.

"I'm sorry that you all have been standing out here in hopes of gaining answers, though for now I am afraid that we cannot give you any." She said, barely loud enough for everyone to hear her. Though Elsa was always the one who would succeed their parents, it had been important that Anna also took lessons on how to speak to the villagers in case something were to happen to Elsa.

If only she could remember what she was supposed to say now, she couldn't remember much of anything. How was she supposed to actually be queen if she couldn't even figure out the right words to say to calm down the villagers.

However, it appeared as though the men and women could sense Anna's distress and they seemed to take that as a sign to back off. One man nodded to the rest of the group before he approached the sleigh, "Just please let Queen Elsa know that we are all praying for her quick recovery." he said gently before leaving the gates along with the others.

What nice people lived in Arendelle. Anna could only hope that she wouldn't completely mess things up when she… no. She couldn't think like that. Not until Elsa was actually gone, she had to keep thinking positive. There was always the possibility that Elsa was stronger than the troll elder had first thought, Elsa may be able to fight the poison now that they knew that this was in fact what it was.

While the gates opened for Anna and Kristoff, Anna did what she could to prepare for what she would have to tell her sister. It would kill her to learn that someone had been poisoning her all along. Because in order for that to happen… surely the culprit would have to be a worker in the palace… right? That would certainly make sense since the only people who actually worked with Elsa's food and drink were servants. Now though, that certainly wouldn't be the case.

Anna would do all the cooking for her sister from that point on. Even if it wasn't the cooks who were doing this, until Anna was completely sure she wouldn't let them cook for Elsa.

It looked like Anna would have to start learning how to actually cook now. It couldn't be that difficult, right? Surely putting together some ingredients wouldn't take too much thought. Even as she was thinking about this, her mind crossed the thought of how several people would be out of a job now that they had to figure out who had poisoned the queen.

Anna almost felt bad.

Then again, it was because her sister was dying that this was going to happen. So she tried not to think too much on that subject. It was then that they pulled up to the royal stables where all the horses were kept along with a nice place for his stable was so much larger than all the other horses, both Kristoff and Sven were okay with him sleeping there during the night.

As they got out of the sleigh, some servants moved to it back to where it belonged, which was not that far from where the stables were actually.

"Princess Anna." The voice took both herself and Kristoff by surprise as they turned to see one of the doctors standing there. He wasn't wearing anything to protect him from the cold and Anna almost found herself scolding him when she realized that he couldn't have come out there for any other reason than to tell her something about Elsa.

Her heart began to pound once more in her chest as she started to feel nervous, "Yes?" She asked as she forced herself to straighten up a bit in an attempt to appear less mentally shaken then she actually was. Surely her sister wasn't dead, right? She was supposed to spend some time with her!

"I believe… that it would be wise for you to go and see the queen now." the man said slowly, "She is really deteriorating quickly, at this rate I am not sure that she will live to tomorrow morning." He had taken off his cap when he started to speak, the universal sign of bad news. At least, that was how Anna had always seen it.

That was what the messenger had done back when she first learned of her parents deaths at sea. It was ultimately a gesture that she had grown to resent over time.

Nodding, Anna turned a little to look at Kristoff who was waving her off. "I will catch up to you in a bit, I want to make sure Sven is comfortable before doing so though." and he understood that she would need a little bit of alone time with her sister, especially if it easily could be her last opportunity for that.

Returning her attention to the doctor, the two started to make their way back into the palace. For years Anna had walked these halls, even with the very same destination point in mind. Now, it felt foreign. It was as though she was in a completely different castle from the one that she had grown up in. Every single person that she passed had a frown on their face and would avoid her gaze, even as they bowed.

Overall… it all seemed so much darker, though really it wasn't at all.

It took almost no time at all for them to arrive at her sisters room, the doctor stopped a few feet from the doorway. "I will join the rest of the doctors in the dining hall, if you happen to need us at any time we will come quickly." The dining hall actually was not far from where Elsa's room was.

"Alright… thank you very much for all of your assistance." Anna said before turning and hurrying into the room. Sienna stood from where she had been kneeling at her sister's side and offered a weak smile to the princess. It was then that the strawberry-blonde young woman noticed that her servant had dark bags under her eyes. It became apparent that Sienna probably had been sleeping just as much as Anna had been since Elsa fell ill.

Which really, was not a lot at all.

"Thank goodness you are here, princess." she said quietly, "She has only just awakened." she took a few steps back from Elsa as Anna approached. Her sisters eyes were closed, and her skin looked clamy and almost had a yellow tint to it. It was then that her eyes opened and Anna realized just how close her sister must be to death. Her eyes were red-rimmed and appeared almost as though they had sunken in a little.

Death was already beginning the process of taking Elsa away.

"Anna…" Elsa whispered, voice hoarse as she weakly reached out to her younger sister. Immediately Anna took that shaky hand in both of hers as she knelt down at Elsa's side. "I don't think that I am going to make it." she said with a tiny, bittersweet smile on her face. "So I am glad that you got back as quickly as you did… I wanted to give you something."

She made a gesture with her free hand and Sienna took a few steps forward before bowing and held out a rectangular, wooden box that Anna hadn't noticed when she first walked in. It was really quite lovely. The surface was smooth and was decorated with intricate, silver lines.

She turned a questioning look to her sister, but Elsa only smiled as she pulled her hand away so that Anna could accept the box.

"What is this?" Anna asked as she accepted the surprisingly heavy box, it was just as smooth as it had looked.

"Open it silly." Elsa whispered and Anna did as she was told.

Inside was a silver, round locket. Unsure, she found herself looking at Elsa once more. It looked familiar, though she couldn't figure out why.

"Its from mother and father," Elsa started, taking Anna off guard as her eyes snapped back to the locket. "When they died, this box had been entrusted to me… to give to you once I believed the time was right. I have one of my own as well. I was going to wait until your wedding day to give this to you…" she winced slightly before forcing a smile. "Mother and father had these commissioned specifically for each of us."

Her vision started to get blurry, and Anna had to blink away her tears before she smiled at Elsa who was watching her with half-lidded eyes. "I- thank you Elsa." She said quietly, "I will always treasure it." Putting the box on the bed, she carefully pulled out the locket and put it on over her head. It hung with enough weight to remind her of its presence.

"I'm glad…" Elsa whispered before closing her eyes for a moment, reopening them when Anna closed the box. "Hey Anna?"

"Yes?" Anna asked, leaning forward a little bit more so that she could hear her sister easier.

"Do you want to build a snowman?" her older sister asked as she closed her eyes once more. Anna gave a laugh that ended in a broken sob as she shook her head a little, the reality of the situation hitting her full force for what felt like the hundredth time that day.

"I'd love to Elsa."

The ice queen smiled before she sighed softly, "I wish that I could, I really do. Though I hardly have any energy at all, maybe another time… hm?"

"Yes, another time would be good." Anna said softly, "We could have a snowball fight and everything, I'm sure Kristoff and Sven would enjoy getting dragged into something like that as well."

"Ah… Kristoff…" Elsa looked at her sister and seemed to examine her silently for a moment before nodding a bit, "I give you my blessing. He is a good man and would treat you right… I only worry about what the rest of the kingdom would think…" she trailed off into a fit of coughing.

Anna wanted to ask what she meant, though learned quickly that she wouldn't be able to.

It was time.

"Elsa… are you happy?" Anna asked suddenly after the coughing had subsided to the light wheezing sound of Elsa's breathing.

It took several moments before the ice queen responded, "I don't think I could be any happier. I am here with my sister, and in the end… I was accepted by the people, despite my peculiar powers. In the end, everything turned out just fine. My only regret is that I am leaving before having the chance to strengthen our sisterly bond, I don't believe we've had enough time…" Now it was Elsa whose beautiful blue eyes were glistening with unshed tears.

"Elsa, the moment you unfroze me was the moment that our bond was both mended and strengthened. Every second was precious and forever will be, I love you and there is nothing that anyone can say or do to change that." Though they certainly had been cheated by time, Anna knew that the time with her sister would always be close to her heart.

"I am so glad that you think so Anna… that really does mean the world to me." she laughed weakly before she shook her head, "It takes a lot of weight off of my shoulders actually, I think that I might be ready now."

Anna almost asked, 'ready for what?' before she realized what her sister was talking about. Anna wanted to tell her sister to fight, to stay strong. She had to bite her tongue to keep from doing so. Her sister was suffering and it didn't appear as though there would be any 'getting better' for her at all. She looked so frail and… well, sick. It was obvious even to Anna that she was too far gone.

When it came to giving up, Anna was terrible at it. She rarely ever did that, it took years before she stopped knocking on Elsa's door, asking if she wanted to build a snowman. The thought of giving up now was a terrible one, though it wasn't really her place to make a decision.

"Look Anna… isn't the moon beautiful?" Elsa asked, gaze on the full moon that was now in perfect view outside of the window. Anna nodded in agreement with a bittersweet smile on her face.

"Yes… it really is." For another few moments, Anna simply admired the moons beauty with her sister. Turning her attention back to her sister and opening her mouth to say something else, Anna stopped cold when she noticed Elsa's blank stare. A smile was still present on her lips, though the light in her eyes was no longer there.

"Elsa?" Anna whispered, praying for a reaction of some kind. When she didn't get so much as a blink, she broke down. Throwing her arms over her sister's covered body, Anna sobbed her heart out. The tears came easily and she barely heard Sienna quietly leave the room.

She stayed that way for a long while, it wasn't until she felt a hand on her shoulder that she forced herself to pull away from her sisters still body. Looking over her shoulder, she peered up with puffy, red eyes at Kristoff who wordlessly pulled her to her feet and wiped away her tears.

Which really only made her cry harder.

Her sister, and the queen of Arendelle was dead… and it would be only a matter of days before she would need to be replaced.

Anna had no idea how she would deal with that.

* * *

I hope that this chapter was alright! Pleaseeee don't forget to review! I would love to hear your guys' thoughts on the story so far~

-Syel


End file.
